The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 isn't going to trounce your first generation Galaxy Tab 10.1. It's not here to compete with Tegra 3 quad core tablets like the Asus Transformer Pad TF300, Acer Iconia Tab A510 and Toshiba Excite 10. Rather, like the 7" Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0, it's Samsung's budget offering for those who want to get into a name brand tablet without breaking the bank. We suspect the company gears this specifically toward buyers who want a more affordable Samsung tablet, because there are comparable or better alternatives that are more competitively priced from other makers.

That's not to say the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 isn't a competent tablet with lots of good software pre-loaded. It has a pleasing 1280 x 800 PLS display, a TI 1GHz dual core CPU and several good Samsung apps for PIM stuff, movie editing and more. It runs Android OS 4.0.3 Ice Cream Sandwich with Samsung's TouchWiz UI on top.

The tablet has 16 gigs of internal storage, and there aren't other capacities available. It has a microSD card slot, so you can expand storage. With Android 4.0 there's no division between application and general storage for internal storage, so you can use all that internal storage for apps and use a card for files (movies, songs and documents). In fact, if you intend to install lots of huge games we suggest you do this, because apps can't be installed on SD cards under ICS.

For those of you who like the idea of an affordable Samsung Android tablet but perfer the 7" size, there's the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 for just $249.

Though just slightly heavier and thicker than the original Tab 10.1, the design isn't as slimming or attractive. The back is gray plastic that feels sturdy but the smooth surface is a bit slippery. We like that Samsung put the stereo speakers on the front surrounding the display so they won't be muffled by your desk, hands or stomach. They're reasonably loud, but not as impressive as the Acer Iconia Tab A510 with Dolby Mobile Audio in terms of fullness and volume.

All controls are on the top edge (when held in landscape mode), and they're small but easy to operate. The microSD card slot lives under a door on the top edge beside the 3.5mm stereo headset jack. Samsung's dock connector is on the bottom edge and it's the same as that used on previous Samsung tablets. That means it should work with Samsung's selection of docks and keyboards. It also uses the same charger and USB cable as prior Samsung tablets.

The tablet doesn't have a micro USB port though it does support USB host. Samsung sells a $20 adapter that attaches to the dock port and it has one full size USB port that works with FAT32 formatted media like flash drives. Oddly, the Samsung didn't recognize our Logitech and XBOX wired USB game controllers unlike our other Android tablets with USB host.

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Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 Video Review

Performance and Multimedia

As you'd expect from the TI OMAP 4430 CPU, benchmarks are just better than half of those from quad core tablets. This is a kindred CPU to that used in the Kindle Fire and Nook Tablet after all. It's also the same CPU used in the Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0. The Tab 2 feels decently fast, but we found it did bog down if we had several heavy apps running. Adobe Flash Player controls are a little balky thanks to the not wildly fast CPU, but the player managed good frame rates.

1080p MPEG4, WMV and DIVX content played perfectly, and you can buy Samsung's optional HDMI adapter that plugs into the dock connector on the tablet's bottom if you wish to view content on a monitor or HD TV. We expected the stereo speakers to be louder since they're aimed at the user, but they have average volume. Sound is not terribly full, but rich sound isn't a hallmark of tablet speakers. Plug in a good set of stereo headphones or pair Bluetooth headphones for a much improved experience.

Again, this is Samsung's most affordable 10" tablet, so you'll get basic photography gear. There's a front VGA video chat camera and a rear 3 megapixel camera. The front camera is a bit noisy and dark but gets the job done in Skype. Though the rear camera is quite low resolution, Samsung as always does a good job with image processing so colors are good and exposure is decent.

The Tab 2 10.1" uses Samsung's PLS display with reasonably good colors and decent brightness. Don't get your hopes up Super AMOLED here; after all the Tab 2 line sits at the bottom of the price barrel. Resolution is the usual 1280 x 800 and the capacitive touch screen is responsive. Auto-brightness is overly conservative and keeps things too dim for our liking (this is true across Samsung Android products). On manual brightness, we had no trouble with brightness in a variety of settings from a dim living room at night to a well-lit room with plenty of windows and lights.

Battery Life

Samsung rarely skims on battery capacity, and the 7,000 mAh Lithium Ion battery keeps the tablet running for 8.5 hours of actual use. That translates into 2 to 3 days on a charge with moderate use. Reading eBooks and web browsing are easy on runtimes. Gaminng will chew through the battery more quickly, as will streaming video, with games being the bigger power hog.

Wrap Up

The tablet has single band WiFi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth and a GPS that works well. It has a VGA front camera and a 3MP rear camera. It's available now for $399. Yes, that's the same price as the quad core Asus Transformer Pad TF300 with 32 gigs of storage. Ouch. That makes it hard for us to recommend the Tab 2 10.1 unless you're particularly fond of Samsung products and their Android software. The TF300 and other Android 4.0 tablets with Tegra 3 quad core CPUs benchmark more than twice as fast and feel faster too.